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5 Bowlers? I Don't Think So

It is about time that the Indian think tank take a good hard look at themselves and get the team composition right. For too long they be going with the theory that 5 bowlers will strengthen the bowling line up, but have failed to recognise that the batting is the thing that needs strengthening rather than the bowling. The team needs a fresh approach with a new role for some of its established stars as well as a path to stardom for some of its emerging talent.

Have I gone mad or has the Indian think tank gone mad? Please tell me if I am wrong but wasn’t the whole point of playing 5 bowlers so that they don’t have to use part time bowlers as the 5th option. Then why did we see Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag bowling yesterday. What was the point in playing a woefully out form RP Singh. Wouldn’t a batsman who would have been able to come in and help Raina and Dhoni towards the end be of more benefit.

For too long the Indian team has been running on the notion that wickets win matches hence 5 bowlers must be played. In my eyes, runs rather than wickets win One Day Internationals and to often the Indian batting line up have been looking venerable because of a lack of depth. How good would it be seeing the likes of an Irfan Pathan coming in number eight? In my humble opinion, Kaif needs too be added to the middle order slotting into the number 6 position. Raina the next super star of Indian cricket needs to develop in the number 3 role with Dravid at 4 and Yuvraj at 5. Of course when the time arises, the big hitters in Dhoni and Pathan can be shuffled around the order.

Who knows what is wrong with Sehwag. It has gone past the point of being funny. Yes he is a match winner who is bound too fire any day, and after this post he probably will against Australia, but surely it is about time that he is given some time in domestic cricket to recapture his form. The man looks woefully out of sorts and down on confidence.

India has four decent bowlers in Pathan, Patel, Agarkar and Harbhajan. The part time bowling of Sehwag, Tendulkar, Raina and Yuvraj complement them quite well. Now I am sure that Dravid can manage to get 10 overs out of these guys.

India’s much vaunted batting line up has failed miserably of late and the run has been going for too long. It is about time that rather than “strengthening their bowling”, they look to strengthen their batting, after all having the runs on the board is the best way to win a game of One Day cricket.

6 comments

Sreeraj Nair said...

Agarkar has been the most inconsistent and most luckiest cricketer in world today. I don't know why he keeps on finding a place in the Indian team. I still remember his single over when Zimbabwe made merry and India lost the last World Cup match. Despite all this experience this bowler often strays on the leg side and one or two overs from him will take the match away from India.

Anyway I m glad to see that he is out of the Indian team. http://www.ndtv.com/sports/cricket/cricshowstory.asp?id=30927&template=Champions

X Factor said...

Yes some might say that he is luky but he provides experiance to a young Indian pace bowling line up. Lets not forget that in the pressure cooker atmosphere of ODI's that youngsters are bound o loose there way and they need some experianced heads around to point them in the right direction. Maybe it just shows the lack of depth that the Indian pace bowling unit used to have

Ayush Trivedi said...

Agarkar has been one of the most consistent performers over the past couple of seasons, in ODIs anyway.

The problem lies not, so much, in the bowling, as it does with the batting. Bring in Uthappa, send Sehwag to domestic cricket and tell him that his place in the squad is not a God-given right.

We've been saying this very thing on this blog for a long time now here.

Ayush Trivedi said...

X,
What's your take on Uthappa? Bring him in for Sehwag or not?

X Factor said...

From what i saw of him recently, he is a very talented player who will on eday get the chance to strut his stuff in international cricket. I guess I like many other people are living in the hope that Sehwag will strike gold soon. I think they should keep him in the side for now but before the tour of South Africa he should be made to play domestic cricket as well as continue his traininig routine. I cant see him being dropped though as he is vice captain.

Anonymous said...

Dont u think sreesanth should be given some encouragement?
I really think he is gud coz he gets the batsmen thinkin and is very aggressive.

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